Railway-coach.



PATEN-I'ED MAR. 17, 1903r 7 '0. ANS ORGE.

RAILWAY COACH. APPLICATION IILEID JAN. 17, 1902.

8 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

10 MODEL.

UNITED STATES PATENT FFICE.

CARL ANSORGE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR. OF ONE-HALF TO JAMES ERICHSEN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

RAI LWAY-COACH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 722,795, dated March 17, 1903.

Application filed January 17, 1902. Serial No. 90,112. (No model.)

T at whom, it may concern: frame G and'is normally closed by a door or Beitknown that'I,CARLANs0RGE,a resident movable section B, held in manner free to of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of slide in the side walls abyinterlockingtongue- Illinois, have invented certain new and useful and-groove joints Movable sections B ex- 5 5 5 Improvements in Railway-Coaches, of which tend to the lower edge of the side wall, so the the following is a full, clear, and exact desections will, when released, have an unobscription. structed downward movement and so a pas- The invention relates to passenger-coaches, senger can easily pass through openings a and more particularly to means for providing A notch 19 formed in the upper portion of to exits for facilitating escape of passengers in one edge of each section B, and a springcase of railway accidents and closures for pressed bolt I restrict the downward movesuch exits. ment of the movable section. A stepped The invention designs to provide means joint of is preferably employed between the whereby passengers will be permitted to upper edges of section B and wall a. The [5 readily escape or pass out of the coaches in invention designs to provide means which case of a railway accident and in addition to will automatically release the movable secthe usual exits provided for convenience in tions when the train is suddenly stopped by passing into and out of the coaches. reason of an accident.

The invention consists in the several novel A horizontally-movable frame C of suitable 20 features hereinafter described and more parconstruction is sustained in guides c, conventicularly defined by claims at the conclusion iently secured to the frame of the car-body hereof. at each end thereof (one only being shown) In the drawings, Figure 1 is a view in side and between a series of springs D at each end elevation of a portion of the body of a pasof the car. A series of retaining lugs or studs z 5 senger-coach embodying the invention. Fig. C are secured to be shifted with frame C, and 2 is a view, partly in section and partly in these lugs are arranged to normally engage side elevation, showing the mechanism wherehooks or plates b secured to and projecting by the window-frame is held in elevated poinwardly from the lowerportion of each movsition and whereby the frame can be manable section B and beneath floor a of the car o nally released. Fig. 3 is a view in horizontal and serve to hold the movable sections in elesection, taken on line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is vated position. An abutment C is secured a detail view, upon an enlarged scale, of the at each end of the car, and against said abutmechanism for holding the window-frame in ment springs D will bear. Abutments C are elevated position and for releasingsaid frame. mounted in manner free to slide in guides C 35 Fig. 5 is a detail view showing the stop for and are arranged to be engaged and shifted restricting the downward movement of the by the draw-head or coupling E or the supwindow-frame. Fig. 6 is a sectional view port for the draw-head at their respective taken on line 6 6 of Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is an inends of the car when either coupling or the verted plan View of the car-body and parts draw-head support is forced inwardly by im- 4o sustained beneath the floor of the coach. Fig. pact thereagainst, resulting from a collision Sisaview in vertical transversesection,taken or the sudden stoppage of the train on acon line 8 8 of Fig. 7. Fig. 9 is a section taken count of accident. Preferably two studs C on line 9 9 of Fig. 2, the window-frame being and plates B are provided for each movable shown in elevation. Fig. 10 is a detail view section, and studs C are adjustably secured 5 45 of the joint between the upper edge of the to frame C bya screw (see Fig. 8) for convenmovable section and side wall of the car. ience in placing the parts in position. Each A denotes the body of a passenger-coach of the abutments C is positioned normally provided with side walls aan'd usual'windows out of the range of travel of the draw-head a. At desired intervals openings a are E and so it will be shifted longitudinally by mo 50 formed in the side walls a. Each opening a the draw;head only when the draw-head is is preferably arranged beneath a windowshifted beyond its ordinary range of travel- Ed I e. g., by the impact resulting from a collision or when the end sill whereby the draw-head is supported is broken or when the draw-head is loosened or removed from its support. In the construction shown the end sill whereby the draw-head is sustained is constructed so that a collision would result in breaking the end sill and allowing the draw-head to engage and shift abutment G In each movable section B a recess b is formed to permit the superposed windowframe G to pass into the section. Each window-frame is provided with one or more projections g, adapted to be engaged by a bolt h of a locking mechanism for holding the window-frame in elevated position. The look ing mechanism comprises a plate 71, secured within and movable with the movable section, a lever H, pivotally sustained in plate h, as at 7L2, connected with bolt h by a stud and slot 7L3 and having an arm 7t and a spring 72, for holding the locking mechanism normally in position to secure window-frame. The looking mechanism may be manually released to permit the window-frame to be lowered by a lever J, pivotally secured to the side wall a, as at J, and having an arm J extending beneath arm 7L of the locking mechanism. A spring J engages lever J, holds said lever normally in position to engage arm 72/, and permits lever to be moved out of the path of arm 7%. Arm J also trips lever H and withdraws bolt h, when the movable section is automatically released.

The operation will be as follows: In ordinary use the window-frames and movable sections will be held in elevated position, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. l2'. e., sliding frame 0 will lock the movable sections in such position and locking-bolt It, held in the movable section, will retain the window-frame in elevated position. In event of a collision or other accident which causes sudden stoppage of the train the resultant impact will cause one of the draw-heads or one of the drawhead supports to shift frame 0 horizontally and longitudinally, so studs 0 will pass from engagement with hook-plates and out of the vertical path of said plates, so the movable sections will be free to gravitate. The sec tions will then descend into lower position (seen in full lines in Fig. 1) and until ar rested by springpressed bolt I, when said bolt passes into notch 19 in each section. During the descent of the sections the locking mechanism which holds the window-frame will release the window-frame to telescope or pass into recess 19 because arm h" of lever H will be swung about its pivot by lever J during the initial part of the downward travel of the movable section and will withdraw bolt it out of the path of teeth of the Windowframe, thus releasing the window-frame, so it will gravitate into the movable section. The several parts will then be in position seen in full lines in Fig. 1, and thus a number of emergency-exits will be provided to facilitate exit of thetoccupants when needed. The parts can be easily restored to normal position by lifting the door-sections and positioning studs 0 beneath plates 17 and lifting the window-frame until bolt h and teeth 9 of the window-frame interlock.

The window-frame can, if desired, be lowered independently of themovable section by shifting lever J manually, which shift will swing lever H about its pivot and withdraw bolt h from engagement with teeth of the window-frame, and thus release the windowframe.

The invention possesses several important advantages. In event of accident or collision emergency-exits are automatically provided throughout the length of the car at convenient intervals, thus preventing danger of death to the occupants resulting from inability to escape therefrom, and particularly if usual doors at the ends cannot be opened. By employing a construction in which the window-frame is automatically released and telescope into each movable section an exit of convenvent size is provided. The construction of the locking mechanism is such that the window-frame can be lowered independently of the movable section when desired and is under manual control for ordinary uses. Furthermore, the parts can, if not damaged, be quickly restored to position to efiect a closure of the emergency-exits after an accident, so the car can be again used.

Manifestly the invention is not to be understood as restricted to the details of construction shown and described, but may be varied without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what 2. The combination with a railway-coach havinga series of openings formed in the side walls thereof of a slidable section normally held in each of said openings and forming a closure therefor, and means whereby all of the section will be simultaneously released, to permit all the sections to fall, said means comprisingahorizontally-movable frame sustained beneath the floor of the car.

3. The combination with a railway-coach having one or more openings formed in the side walls thereof, of a slidable section normally held in position to close each opening and means whereby said sections will be antomatically released in event of a collision or accident.

at. The combination with a railway-coach having one or more openings therein, of a closure held to normally close each opening or 1 openings, and means whereby said closure will be released in event of a collision or accident, said means comprising a horizontallymovable frame sustained beneath the floor of the car, and springs at each end of the car, and yieldingly holding said frame in normal position. I

5. The combination with a railway-coach having one or more openings therein, of a closure held to normally close each opening or openings, and means whereby said closure will be released in event of a collision or accident, said means comprising a horizontallymovable frame sustained beneath the floor of the car, and springs at each end of the car for yieldingly holding said frame in normal position a plate on each section, and a stud engaging said plate.'

6. The combination with a railway-coach having a series of openings therein, and arranged throughout its length, of a closure for each opening, and means whereby said closures will be automatically released in event of a collision or accident, comprising a longitudinally-movable frame extending lengthwise of the car and beneath the floor of the car.

7. The combination with a railway-coach having an opening formed in the side wall in position to close said opening, a windowframe held above said openings, and arranged to slide into said section, means'whereby said means will be automatically released in event of a collision or accident, and means whereby said window-frame will be released to fall into said section when said section is released.

9. The combination with a railway-coach having an opening formed in the walls thereof, of a movable section held normally in position to close said opening, a window-frame held above said opening, and arranged to slide into said section, means whereby said section will be automatically released in event of a collision or accident, and means whereby said window can be manually released.

FRED GERLACH, JAMES F. ERICKSEN. 

